


Brenner

by AllanIV



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-20
Updated: 2016-01-20
Packaged: 2018-05-15 05:29:15
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,639
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5773096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AllanIV/pseuds/AllanIV
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In her first year Buffy stops a vampire attack on the Sunnydale water supply, but loses something close to her.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Brenner

Buffy moved toward the old water building. She glanced left and right, looking for signs of trouble, her ponytail bobbing up and down as she did. Behind her Xander trembled, stake clutched in his otherwise inexperienced hand. Taking up the rear was Brenner, an older man, a neighbour and friend to Buffy and her mother. Not coincidentally, he was also the new janitor to the building they were about to enter. He glanced over his shoulder keeping an eye on their rear.  
“Are you sure they're going to be here?” Brenner whispered. “I only got the keys today, I don't really want to lose my job before I've started.”  
“Oh they'll be here.” Xander whispered back, sounding more confident than he really was.  
“Shhh,” Buffy interjected, holding a finger up to silence them both.  
Just ahead, standing just near to the emergency exit, a man with short, cropped black hair was on watch. His eyes were peeled directly ahead of him, and he seemed to be scanning the treeline.  
“Rise. He will rise. He will rise and destroy. He will rise and he will destroy. He will rise.”  
“Who's that?” Brenner asked nervously.  
“Another of the Master's goons.” Xander replied.  
“Looks like Carl from security,” Brenner muttered under his breath. He squinted. “But he doesn't have his security jacket.”  
“Well who needs high vis when when you're a crazy vamp?” Xander replied.  
“Stay here,” Buffy ordered, gesturing for them to wait.  
She stalked toward the man, gripping the stake in her hand like a dagger. Carl the vampire didn't notice her approach, muttering his mantra over and over. He barely stopped to gag as the stake plunged through his heart.  
He turned to ash in a second, his whole form reverting to cinders. Brenner watched eyes wide, failing to conceal his shock.  
“First vampire old man?” Xander spoke. “Don't worry you get used to it.”  
Brenner took a step out of the shadows. Buffy glanced behind her, then returned to scanning the tree line. Brenner opened his mouth to speak, twice or thrice, gaping the bit of flab like a fish, then he glanced toward the red emergency exit door. It was open.  
“Look,” he muttered, “It's open.”  
Behind him Xander scooted around for a peek. “Yeah but does that mean they're not here yet o+r that they're already inside?”  
“One way to find out,” Buffy said. Striding toward the open door, she gave it a hefty kick, sending the big metal thing swinging on its hinges. It banged against the wall on the other side. No vampires came charging out.  
“They could be further inside, Xander behind me.”  
“Okay,” Xander said, bringing his stake up near his chin like how he'd seen Buffy do it. Glancing back and forth he took a number of short, sharp breaths. Brenner, taking up the rear, hesitated.  
“I'll watch the door,” he said, grabbing the emergency exit and pulling it in front of him, slipping in the gap between it and the wall, “Make sure it doesn't get closed on you, hey.”  
He tossed Buffy the keys. She caught them dexterously with her left wrist. Just seeing that movement, strong and precise, gave Brenner all the confidence he needed. He exhaled the breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. “Don't lose them, okay.”  
“Count on it,” Buffy replied and ventured deeper into the building.  
“Wait, does that mean…?”  
“Xander.”  
“Shutting up.”  
Brenner exhaled again, deeper this time, then took up his position hidden behind the door. He listened intently for any sign of fighting, for the sounds of those two combating whatever plan these vampires had for Sunnydale. He felt his muscles twitching. Brenner was old, the wrong side of forty and more out of shape than he liked to admit. In a fight, he couldn't be much help. Still, he couldn't believe a sixteen year old girl was fighting these things. Just a kid. A high school kid. Not even a senior.  
He was still lost in those thoughts when he heard voices coming from outside. Holding his breath he pulled himself closer against the wall. Just as he expected, three vampires entered the room, their wrinkly, war-faces on. They were dressed in street clothes befitting a visit to the local night-club, each of them not much older than Buffy or Xander. They entered the room and glanced around.  
“Well? Where is he?” The girl among them hissed.  
“How should I know?” One of the others, a big guy, broad and muscular muttered.  
“Well at least he left the door open.” The third one said, his chemically straightened brown hair reaching a little past his shoulders.  
“He was supposed to be here waiting for us,” the girl explained, casting her gaze left and right. “Something's wrong. The Slayer must be here.”  
“Aw man...” Chemically Straightened complained. “Every single time...”  
“Should we go?” Muscle said, more a suggestion than a question.  
“No dimwits, we proceed on mission, eyes and ears peeled, we don't want to be ambushed.”  
“Yeah, yeah.” Chemically Straightened muttered, walking off on his own. Brenner held his breath. He had clear line of sight to the young vampire now. Could see his painted nails and his band T-shirt. All the thing had to do was turn slightly and he would see him, trapped, nowhere to run.  
“Hey! Pay attention, if she's here we might have seconds left before we're dirt.”  
Clicking his tongue and scuffing his shoes, Chemically straightened reluctantly turned around. There were two ways he could have turned, to the left where his eyes would never once go past the entrance, or to the right, where he would see Brenner huddled in his corner. He turned right.  
“Well lookie here.”  
The door swung suddenly and Muscle stood there, glaring. He was a lot more intimidating face to face, Brenner barely came up to his chest.  
“Who's this?” Muscle asked accusingly.  
“Who cares, kill him and be done with it,” the girl snapped, eyes fixed on the other doorway in the room.  
“Me first,” Chemically Treated muttered, flicking his hair back out of his face. “I haven't eaten, in ages.”  
“You ate on the way here,” Muscle replied.  
“That was a snack,” he said, pushing Muscle out of the way. “This will be a feast.” Chemically treated grabbed Brenner by the neck, bringing him close.  
“Will you two hurry it up, she could be back any-”  
There was a howl of wind and noise as Buffy's stake plunged into the vampire's chest and turned her to ash. The two vamps looked up from their meal, eyes wide and lit with glee.  
“Slayer...” Muscle spoke slowly and full of rage.  
“Me first, me first!” Chemically Treated shouted and dove forwards. Buffy grabbed him by the wrist as he lunged and threw him against the wall. Chemically Treated went sprawling, and a moment later Xander burst into the room, brandishing his piece of wood and plunged it through the creature's chest. Buffy didn't take her eyes off the big one.  
“Slayer...” Muscle repeated, his eyes cold and glaring.  
“What's up jock?” Buffy replied.  
Muscle lunged, throwing a fist at the diminutive sixteen year old, but a duck and a weave later and her wooden stake plunged into the big vampire's heart. The look on his face, gaping and stunned transferred over to his ashen form, then he burst apart in a cloud of dust. The threat was over, the vampires dead.  
And Brenner lay on the floor.  
“Buff,” Xander called.  
Blood trickled down from Brenner's neck. He'd lost most of it, he could feel it. They'd arrived a second too late. At first he refused to let himself believe it, but then he saw it in her eyes as she knelt down close and he knew.  
“Not your fault,” he whispered. “I knew what… what I was getting into.”  
“No, he'll be okay right? I mean, Giles has got to know some kind of...”  
“Xander,” Buffy spoke, silencing him again. Brenner gave a weak smile.  
“Don't, blame yourself,” he muttered. He choked for breath. His hands were trembling, most of his body had gone cold but they, they were still warm. He glanced down and noticed Buffy held them tightly in her hands. He smiled at her sympathy.  
“And to think,” he coughed. “I was only two days from re-hirement.”  
He gave a choked laugh, that she mirrored just as weakly. He wasn't sure if it was honest, or just sympathy, but he appreciated it. One last chuckle.  
“Go on,” he muttered, lolling his head toward her stake, he could feel the last of his will fading. “Do it.” Buffy gave a weak smile.  
“Not yet,” she replied. “Not till you're one of them.”  
Brenner felt a surge of comfort overwhelm him. She was going to let him die, as a human. Human to the last moment. He wanted to thank her for it. He spluttered, forced himself to form the words.  
“Thank...”  
The rest never came.  
Tears welled in Buffy's eyes as she held the dead body in front of her. It was not the first life she hadn't saved, and she knew it wouldn't be her last. This one had been important, they all were, but this one had been a friend. One salty dear dripped down her cheek, but she didn't wipe it away. She held onto those hands for as long as she could.  
Brenner's eyes flashed open and he jerked suddenly. His face a mess of anger and wrinkles. He had enough time to gnash his teeth and growl before Buffy's stake plunged into his chest and he became just another patch of ash on the floor. Job finally complete, Buffy's hand covered over her face, and she sobbed freely. Xander's hand fell on her shoulder. No words passed between them.  
He was gone.


End file.
